ABC FAMILY TO JOIN MILLIONS IN ‘GOING PURPLE’ FOR SPIRIT DAY IN UNITED STAND AGAINST BULLYING

NEW YORK, NY – ABC Family cast members from across all of the network's original series Pretty Little Liars, The Fosters, Chasing Life, Switched at Birth, Melissa & Joey, Baby Daddy and Young & Hungry, as well as the network's staff are among the millions that will 'go purple' for Spirit Day on October 16 in a stand against bullying and to show their support for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youth, GLAAD announced today.

Supporters are encouraged to take the Spirit Day pledge at /spiritday

”The Fosters” cast members recorded a video message in support: Teri Polo said “Join us on October 16^th by wearing purple in support of Spirit Day.” Sherri Saum added, “Together we can take a stand against bullying and send a message to LGBT youth that it’s okay to be who you are.”

That video is viewable here: /blog/video-abc-familys-fosters-goes-purple-spiritday

The ABC Family stars will be joined by the network’s staff, who will also wear purple on Spirit Day in support of LGBT youth. Additionally, ABC Family and the network's series will ‘go purple’ on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for Spirit Day on October 16 as well as post graphics of iconic LGBT moments from their series. ABC Family is participating in this important campaign as a part of Disney/ABC Television Group’s overall “Choose Kindness” initiative during October’s National Bullying Prevention Month.

Spirit Day, which will take place on October 16, inspires millions to wear purple or ‘go purple’ online in a united stand against bullying and to show their support for LGBT youth. Each year, Spirit Day draws the participation of celebrities, corporations, media outlets, sports leagues, schools, faith institutions, national landmarks, and individuals. Spirit Day is made possible by the generous support of its national partners PepsiCo and Wells Fargo, as well as official partners Comcast-NBCUniversal and Google, and supporting partner American Eagle Outfitters.

For a complete list of celebrity participants, media outlets, TV networks, organizations and corporations visit /spiritday. Additional participants to be announced.

Millions wear purple on Spirit Day as a sign of support for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) youth and to speak out against bullying. Spirit Day was started in 2010 as a response to the young people who had taken their own lives. With GLAAD’s help, Spirit Day has since garnered widespread support from celebrities, TV news and entertainment programs, corporations, organizations, schools, local communities, and even national landmarks. Spirit Day coincides with GLSEN’s Ally Week, as well as National Bullying Prevention Month.

According to GLSEN's 2011 National School Climate Survey, 63.5% of LGBT students reported feeling unsafe at school because of their sexual orientation, 43.9% because of their gender expression. GLSEN also reported that 81.9% of LGBT students report being verbally harassed because of their sexual orientation, and 63.9% because of their gender expression.

Previous Spirit Day participants include The White House, Oprah Winfrey, Ellen DeGeneres, Cher, Shaquille O'Neal, Good Morning America, The Today Show, The View, The Talk, The Tonight Show, the NBA, the NFL, Major League Baseball, NASCAR, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, the Las Vegas Strip, and more. For more information, visit /spiritday

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